Car-coupling.



W. MCCONWAY, JR.

CAR COUPLING.

APPLICATION FILED NOV.27,1918.

1,294,287. Patented Feb.11,1919.

ED STAIES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM MGCONWAY, JR., OF PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO THE MGCONWAY & TORLEY COMPANY, OF PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA, A 603- IPORATIO N OF PENNSYLVANIA.

CAR-COUPLING.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, TILLIAM .McCoN- \VAY, Jr., a citizen of the United States, residing at Pittsburgh, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Car-Couplings; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

Mfy invention relates to car couplers of the type exemplified in the Master Car Builders standard D coupler wherein the knuckle locking device is adapted when raised to unlocked position to swing rearwardly so as to be seated in lockset position on the shorter arm of a horizontally rotatalole knuckle opening lever. As now constructed the form and relation of the coupler head, lock and knuckle opening lever of the standard D coupler are such that the knuckle locking mechanism at times fails to resume the locked position after the knuckle is rotated to closed or coupled position. This failure of the lock to drop to locked position is occasioned by the knuckle opener assuming a position in which it projects into the path of movement traversed by the lock when executing a locking movement. Under service con ditions this defect of operation tends to be aggravated, since the blows of the tail of the knuckle against either the knuckle opening lever or the adjacent part of the coupler head causes or tends to cause a compression of the metal permitting the shorter arm of the knuckle opening lever to extend correspondingly further into the path of locking movement of the lock. It is the object of my invention to overcome the before noted defect in car couplers of the M. C. B. type employing a combination of elements like or substantially like that involved in the standard D coupler. Generally stated, this object is effected by embodying in the car coupler, and in combination with the head thereof and the knuckle pivotally mounted on said head, a horizontally rotatable lever for rotating said knuckle to open position, a locking device for the knuckle capable of moving toward the shorter arm of the knuckle Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed November 27, 1 918.

Patented Feb. 11, 1919.

Serial No. 264,314.

opener lever and adapted to be supported thereby in lockset position, and means on the coupler head for engaging said arm at a. point between the locking device and the pivotal point of the knuckle opening lever to limit the rotation of the shorter arm of the lever toward the knuckle locking device.

In the drawings illustrating the adaptation of my invention to a Master Car Builders standard D coupler,

Figure 1 is a horizontal sectional view of the mechanism, the knuckle and knuckle opening lever being in plan.

,Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view on the line 22, Fig. 1, the lock for restraining outward rotation of the knuckle being in elevation.

In the drawings, 1 indicates the coupler head, 2 is the knuckle and 3 is the knuckle pin by which the knuckle is pivotally mounted on said head. Outward rotation of the knuckle to uncoupled position normally is restrained by a gravity actuated lock 4: which is movably mounted within the coupler head so as to be capable, when raised, of swinging rearwardly, not only to a position in which it rests upon and is sustained in elevated or lockset position by the shorter arm of the knuckle opening lever 5, but also to an extent sufiicient to cause the knuckle opening lever to rotate and thus force the knuckle 2 to swing open.

A lifter 6 which is movably connected at its lower end to the lock 4 by means of pintles 7 and projects outwardly through the upper wall of the coupler head may be employed for lifting the lock to unlocked position and for causing it to execute the rearward rotation for inducing a lmuckle opening rotation of the knuckle opening lever 5. In order that the lock 4. may be actuated by an underneath release rigging if desired, said lock is preferably provided at its lower end with a slot 8 adapted to receive a well known form of release rigging of that type.

In locked position the lock 4: rests upon the shorter arm 9 of the lmuckle opening lever 5, which is pivotally mounted in the lower part of the coupler head 1 so as to be horizontally rotatable. In addition to the seat or shoulder 10 that engages the upper surface of the knuckle opening lever when the parts are in locked position, the lock 4 is provided with a lower shoulder 11 adapted to be seated upon the upper surface of the shorter arm 9 of the knuckle opener to thereby retain the lock in unlocked or lockset position permitting an uncoupling rotation of the knuckle. Vhen the lock lifter 6 is drawn upwardly to unlock the coupler the pintles 7 thereof engage and pull upwardly upon the look a at a point above and to one side of its center of gravity. The lower portion or leg 12 of the lock is thus caused to swingv rearwardly under the influence of gravity as soon as the lockset shoulder 11 reaches the upper surface of the shorter arm of the knuckle opener 5. If at this time the upward pull upon the lifter 6 is discontinued, the shoulder 11 will seat itself upon the knuckle opening lever and the lock 4: will be sustained in an unlocked position permitting the knuckle 2 to be subsequently rotated to open position.

VVhenthe lock lifter 6 is pulled upwardly beyond the point necessary to allow outward rotation of the knuckle, the lower portion or leg 12 of the lock is caused to swing rearwardly, thus forcing the shorter arm 9 of the knuckle opening lever to execute a corresponding rearward rotation. To render this action positive the lock 4: is provided with a' forwardly projecting lug 13 which, when the lock is raised above its unlocked position, engages and, rocks upon a fulcrum lug 14c projecting rearwardly from the upper part of the forward wall of the coupler head. When the shorter arm of the knuckle opening lever is forced rearwardly by the lock, the longer arm of the lever, which extends behind the tail of the knuckle 2, presses against the knuckle tail and swings the knuckle to open position.

Between the lock 4 and the pivotal point 15 of the knuckle opening lever 5 the lower wall of the coupler head 1 is formed with an upwardly extending lug or projection 16 which is adapted to engage the forward face of the shorter arm 9 of the knuckle opening Copies of this patent may be obtained for lever, the latterbeing preferably concaved or recessed, as at 17, so that the said projection 16 may be of ample size without interfering with or requiring modification of the usual form of knuckle. The lug 16 forms a stop adapted to engage the arm 9 of the knuckle opening lever 5 on which the lock is seated when in lockset osition and to arrest the forward rotation of said arm at a point preventing it from extending into the path traversed by the lock 4: in returning to locked position after the knuckle has been opened.

I claim:

1. A car coupler having a head, a knuckle, a horizontally rotatable lever for opening said knuckle, a lock for said knuckle adapted to move toward one of the arms of said lever and to be supported on said arm in lockset position, and means for engaging said arm between said lock and the pivotal point of said lever to limit the rotation of said arm toward said lock.

2. A car coupler having a head, a knuckle, a rotatable lever pivotally mounted on the lower wall of said head for opening said knuckle, and a lock for said knuckle adapt ed to be supportedin lockset position by one of the arms of said lever, said head being provided with a stop adapted to engage said,

arm between said lock and the pivotal point of said lever.

3. A car coupler having a head, a knuckle, a horizontally rotatable lever for opening said knuckle, and a lock for said knuckle adapted to be supported in lockset position by one of the arms of said lever, said lever being formed on its forward face adjacent its pivotal point with arecess, and said head being provided with a stop adapted to project into said recess and engage said lever to thereby limit the forward movement of said arm of said lever.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

WILLIAM VMCCONWAY, J R.

five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner .ofi Patents, Washington, D. C. 

